We now return you to your regularly scheduled knitting blog. To make up for that lapse into serious thought, I'll give you a quick blast through all the things I've touched in the past few days.
As you might have suspected, I've been working away at Laminaria. Here she is after five repeats of the "star chart".
Okay, technically, that's five repeats plus two rows. I had more knitting in me last night, but no light with which to photograph well ... so I went on ahead by a bit.
To make up for it, here's an artsy shot...
I am just loving this Knitting Goddess yarn. (what's not to love? it's cashmere!)
I've 6 more rows before we start the next chart, after which I'll slow down a bit -- I won't have that one memorized <grin>
In addition to the lovely Laminaria, I actually brought Irtfa'a out of hiding, and worked another row there. Those rows are ever so much longer -- and the first one was a PITA row -- not only did it have beads, but I'd forgotten to put them in on the previous row, so it had thinks like *work 3 sts, drop next stitch down one row, add bead, bring stitch back up, work stitch, add bead to stitch just worked* repeat between *'s. Not quite that bad, but close. I decided to bail on the second bead for each one, and will add it on the way back.
I didn't bother photographing it this time, as it really looks no different, photographically speaking, than the last time you saw it, when it looked like this:
But life has not been all lace, here in Shadowland. Oh no...
There has been yarn winding ...
I picked up this lovely organic cotton Pakucho at my LYS. It is going to be a square, or maybe two, in a blanket that some of us are secretly knitting for a friend whose baby is due in February.
There has also been swatching:
for the Must Have Cardigan. The Divine Though Blogless Elizabeth and I have been planning to knit it for ages. And now that Maria is also knitting it, I figured the time was now. Maria might even wait for me to catch up a little.... maybe....
There has been cabling. Twice. First with the wee socks I'm knitting, and which do not look appreciably different than they did the last time you saw them, and then, on larger needles, with Natalia. I particularly like this detail at the under arms.
Even if it does look bloody strange right now, just after the join..
No way does that look like it could possibly fit me. I'm going to trust a bit longer...do a bit of shaping adjustment, and then put it on looooooong needles and have a try on. I'm debating just doing the sleeves first though. It's much easier to hoik it around for the sleeve when there's not a whole sweater to move, don't you think?
There has also been moebiusing, for the red moebius that threw it's cable a few weeks ago. Photographing it, however, is pretty much a waste of time. It looks like a red blob.
There has even been needle point
Among the Mission Possible Projects this year is Bookworm's (J's) Christmas Stocking, which I stared in 2000. She's not been wholly without, as she has a mini-stocking with adorable zebras on it that we pin to a generic felt one. But's it's past time for this to be finished so it can hang by the fireplace with the rest of them.
I have no doubt that if we had not moved, and thus I had continued to work at my old LYS (Flying Colours), this would be finished. There was lots of Needlepoint motivation there; heck I was encouraged to work on it at work during any down time. This year is it. I must finish.
Today, I think I'll work on the baby blanket square while I wait for the dealership to persuade my car to release the CD I put in today. I loaded a CD, and it responded with the helpful message "CDC Malfunciton Error" and wont' let me reject the offending CD or listen to any of the other five that it has in it. Thank heavens for portable knitting, eh?
I need to make a couple Christmas stockings by next year. No way I am going to needlepoint them, though -- knitting is much more pleasurable for me. That said, your teddy bear stocking is tres cute!
Posted by: kmkat | January 21, 2009 at 12:25 PM
Yummy colors - you're right in my bluey-greeny *love* range, and I do like the cables :)
Posted by: Joy | January 21, 2009 at 12:49 PM
Drat. I guess I really have to add yet another WIP and start swatching for Must Have so you and Maria don't leave me in the dust...
Posted by: the divine (yet blogless) Elizabeth | January 21, 2009 at 01:06 PM
Hmm....advantage number 613 to not having kids--no desire to do needlepoint that needs to be finished within 18 years.
I hate deadlines.
Also, I was wondering what LYS you use. I much like Klose Knits, but Needleworks has an impressive wall of sock yarn. Thoughts?
Posted by: Colleen G | January 21, 2009 at 04:16 PM
Although quite tedious sound and looking, your Irtfa'a Shawl looks wonderful. The needlepoint also looks wonderful. Both are things I haven't the patience in the world to do though, so I admire them all the more.
Posted by: Walden | January 21, 2009 at 05:46 PM
Um. I might touch that many projects in a *year*.
I'm going to put my fingers in my ears and sing "la la la" until I find my earplugs... then I'll stuff those in my ears and go knit on my poor sock. It knows I love it, doesn't it? :-)
Posted by: faerielady | January 21, 2009 at 06:05 PM